AppJam+ Fall 2018 PYLUSD Showcase Finale Recap & Results

Dreams for Schools' concluded the 2018 Fall AppJam+ Program with a final Showcase Finale on December 6th, where students from 6 middle schools from the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District presented the mobile applications they had developed over a 10-week period. The Showcase finale event was held at Yorba Linda High School with presentations from 32 middle school teams.

With nearly 160 middle school students from Bernardo Yorba Middle School, Kraemer Middle School, Travis Ranch School, Tuffree Middle School, Valadez Middle School Academy, and Yorba Linda Middle School, judges had an incredibly tough task to select 4 four winners to take the prizes. In addition to the friendly judging competition, a "Best Poster" award was voted on by participating students.

1st Place Winners of Google Chrome Books – Leaf Co. of Yorba Linda Middle SchoolApp Name: The Silent ForestMentor: Evangeline W. Team Members: Ella L., Norah L., Alex H., Caitlin M., Logan J.App Description: Mattramos/Billy is stuck in a haunted forest full of ghosts! He only has a certain amount of time to get out of the forest. While he ventures and explores the forest, help him overcome obstacles with certain items and defeat ghosts by answering questions.Technical Components Used: Audio, touchscreen, buttons

2nd Place Winners of BB-8 Spheros – The Escape Artists of Tuffree Middle SchoolApp Name: Pyramid EscapeMentor: Danielle J.Team Members: Austin F., Adrian M., Alex B., Joshua E.App Description: Join a team of adventurers as they make their way through a pyramid fraught with danger. Each of the four characters is based on one of the fields of STEM. The player answers STEM-based questions to defeat monsters and advance through the pyramid. Answer incorrectly too many times, and the party may never return...Technical Components Used: Our team designed all of the graphics and audio themselves. The game pulls from a database of questions and answers to display to the player. It also uses a clock to manage the time flow of the game and animations.

3rd Place Winners of Amazon Fire Tablets & Best Poster Award Winners of Solar Robot Kits – The Fuzzballzzz of Travis Ranch Middle SchoolApp Name: Piggy PopMentor: Kristi C.Team Members: Rose S., Audrey A., Justin L. App Description: This is a game about a pig with a balloon who's flying high. The player chooses a type of questions to answer, Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, or Math, and the game begins. The pig is positioned on the bottom of the screen and moves left and right as the player tilts the device in the corresponding direction. Questions are at the top of the screen and possible answers will show up in the form of balloons. Players must move towards the correct answer for their balloon to increase and continue flying. Wrong answers will deflate the balloon. Occasionally, birds will appear and the player must avoid them or it’s game over!Technical Components Used: The primary gameplay is on one screen. Category selection and play screen are two separate arrangements that are turned on and off as needed. A timer is used to simulate a moving background. Gyroscope gets the tilt of the tablet and allows the player to move the piggy. Audio players let music play consistently throughout the game. Questions and answers are premade in lists and called by a procedure based on category selection. Art was drawn digitally by the team.

4th Place Winners of Makey Makey Devices – Wiseman Builders of Yorba Linda Middle SchoolApp Name: Budget BridgeMentor: Julio Hiram B.Team Members: Rafael G., Dane R., Zachary B., Bartolo M.App Description: Budget bridge is a bridge building app that asks the player questions in order to gain resources to build your bridge.Technical Components Used: Audio and art was designed by the students

Closing Remarks

This is now Dreams for Schools' 3rd time partnering with PYLUSD to bring the AppJam+ to all 6 of their middle schools and it was a grand success, with the largest number of teams participating yet! Among our student participants, there was a good mix of new faces along with those who had previously been in AppJam+. The apps these students developed and presented were truly reflective of their growth throughout the program, both technically and personally. The level of technical sophistication highlighted by each app speaks volumes to the sheer teamwork and technical savvy the students have developed over the course of only 10 weeks time. The stage presence of all participating teams is applaud-worthy, as the students boldly and brightly showed off all of their hard work to the large attending audience.

Thank you all for your support of a program that not only helps participants gain technical skills and knowledge of possible STEM career paths but also increases each participant's belief in themselves and their aptitude for a career in STEM fields.